1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to microbend sensors, and in particular to a new and useful optical sensor for the measurement of rotational position using a single optical channel.
2. Description of the Related Art
The measurement or sensing of rotational or angular position through the use of optical sensors is known in the field. However, these optical sensors use code plates for binary encoders that require an optical channel for each bit of resolution used in the measurement. For example, for a resolution of one part in a thousand, ten bits and ten optical channels are required. The resulting multi-channel electronics are very complex and very expensive. Additionally, these known sensors are inherently extrinsic and therefore require sealing from outside forces of the environment in order to avoid contamination and degradation. Rotational position sensors are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,698,616 and 4,679,029.